For anyone who is working, I think it’s probably safe to say we are always on the lookout for a book and article or even some sage words that are going to help us do our job easier, better, faster, cheaper. (And if you’re clever, in that order) There are so many management philosophies I […]

There are inherent sequences built into our world. And it seems to me that when things are done out of the sequence we all look at it and say that’s ridiculous [see video]. But the phenomenon noted here only applies when the sequence flat out fails if it’s done in the wrong order. If there […]

We all know how critical it is to understand the eight deadly wastes of manufacturing. They are: Transportation Inventory Motion Waiting Overprocessing Overproduction Defects Unused employee creativity In a nut shell, all the bad things that happen in our factories fall into one of these categories. Believe it or not, all eight of these are […]

If you have a shop with more than one person in it i’m willing to bet there isn’t more than a four hour stretch where you don’t see a mistake happening, find a mistake that happened, or find yourself making a mistake. Typically, when mistakes are mentioned to the poor person who made it, the […]

Just recently I spoke to a friend who had started their lean adventure back in 2015. It was so great to catch up with them, everyone has an interesting story and this was no exception. After getting all the personal stuff and gossip all caught up, naturally the conversation turned to business. This fellow owns […]

Do you have a people problem………………or a process problem?   It doesn’t seem to matter where I go, the story is the same from all business owners “its impossible to find good people”.   I’m sure we can all relate to this story.  You have a manufacturing plant full of people, they are all scurrying […]

The “F” word. It is my endeavor to always bring value to you, the reader.  What we have decided to do is a series of articles that if you follow along and teach your people, you should be able to glean information in the proper sequence to assist you on your Lean adventure. Politically correct […]

We quite often get calls, or find ourselves in a conversation where somebody is inevitably asking “what’s the leanest way to lay out my factory”? This is always a delicate subject because it is important that all machines are located in the right spot based on lean principles, but it’s not that decisive. there isn’t […]

I think this month’s article will apply to everyone who is even thinking about Lean.  Whether you have been manufacturing for 50 years, or you are a start-up looking to find new and innovative ways to have saw dust coursing through your veins, you won’t want to miss this one.   You probably got as […]

Boy, if there were ever a more counterintuitive statement than the title of this article, I would like to hear about it.  How can something that promotes efficiency harbor waste?